Blue-footed boobies

On Sunday February 24th, our second day in the Galapagos, we sailed to North Seymour Island. We saw hundreds of land iguanas, frigate birds and blue-footed boobies.

The boobies are amazingly entertaining. In trying to attract a mate, the male booby actually dances and raises his blue feet as if saying "pick me, pick me, my blue feet are the best". If attracted, the female joins the male and they dance the "booby two-step". If all goes well, the dance peaks in mutual sky pointing and culminates in mating. They end their mating by placing a ceremonial twig, a reminder of the day when these birds were nest builders. The word booby comes from the Spanish word for clown.